List of June Fourth Tiananmen Prisoners still held in custody and their backgrounds

It has been 20 years since June Fourth, but there are still eight so-called“thugs” who are still being held. They are Zhu Gengsheng (朱更生), Li Yujun (李玉君), Chang Jingqiang (常景强), Yang Pu (杨璞), Jiang Yaqun (姜亚群), Miao Deshun (苗德顺), Shi Xuezhi (石学之), and Song Kai (宋凯).

1. Zhu Gengsheng (朱更生): Male, around 45 years old.After June Fourth, he was sentenced to the death penalty under the charge of“counterrevolutionary arson” with a two-year suspension and a life-longdeprivation of political rights. In Zhu Gengsheng's trial of the first hearing,he was sentenced to death; the second hearing affirmed the original sentence.The Supreme People's Court amended the sentence to a stay of execution duringits review of the sentence. In the video of the "riot" of June Thirdbroadcast by CCTV after June Fourth, there was a tank was burning on TiananmenSquare. A young man stood on the tank, brandishing a flag, yelling, "Wewon!" That was Mr. Zhu Gengsheng.

Zhu Gensheng's father had been a secretary during the Republic of China,before the Communist Revolution. He died during the Cultural Revolution,persecuted to death. Zhu's mother raised him and his two sisters on her own.His eldest sister works at the pharmacy in Beijing Tongren Hospital. In 2006,Zhu Gengsheng's sisters wheeled his octogenarian mother in to visit him. Zhu'smother told him that she may not be able to again visit him and that she waslooking forward to seeing him return home soon. His sisters then went in tovisit Zhu in turn.

Zhu is not married. Presently he is serving his sentence at Beijing No. 2Prison. He has over five years remaining in his sentence.

2. Li Yujun (李玉君): Male, around 45 years old. After June Fourth, Liwas convicted of "arson" and sentenced to death with a two yearsuspension, along with a life-long deprivation of his political rights. Thecause of the sentence was a burned military vehicle in around Hongmiao,Chaoyang District, Beijing.

Li Yujun's father was a worker at Beijing Cotton Factory No. 3. His motherdied in 1989, and his father remarried. Since his arrest and sentence, Li'sfather has not been to see him. Li Yujun has three brothers. The eldest wasamongst the first to graduate high school following the Cultural Revolution; hesettled down in the countryside outside Harbin, Heilongjiang, and does not havethe means to go see his brother. The second work in a factory in Balizhuang, onthe outskirts of Beijing. He occasionally visits Li with his wife, bringing abit of pocket money for Li. The third works in an auto repair shop in HuayuanVillage, also in the outskirts of Beijing; he generally does not worry aboutLi. The primary source of Li Yujun’s living expenses are laundry fees, dishwashingsoap, toothpaste, and soap to wash his towels; he gets a 5-yuansubsidy from the prison each month.

Li Yujun is unmarried. Presently Li is serving his sentence at Beijing No. 2Prison. He has over five years remaining in his sentence.

Regarding Zhu Gengsheng and Li Yujun sentences: In 1991,they both received a stay of execution. In 1993, their sentences were reducedto life imprisonment (the sentence went into effect in 1994, after the writtenjudgment came into their possession). In 1996, documentation for Zhu and Li onreducing their life sentence to a fixed term was sent by the prison squadron tothe Policy Department of the Beijing No. 2 Prison. By 1997, one year later,they still had not received a reply, so they inquired with a squadron leader. Afew days later, the leader of the squadron, Liu Fuli, sent them a reply: we’vealready submitted the data; in fact, it was lost by the prison, the supervisionbureau, or the court. We can’t investigate what happened, so you're out ofluck. We can do nothing but re-apply. Normally when people take these measuresto reduce their sentence, the process take two years. For Zhu and Li, it tookthem three years. In 1998, they finally received the amended sentence: a fixedterm of twenty years.

3. Chang Jingqiang (常景强): Male, 40 (born 1969). AfterJune Fourth, he was sentenced to life and deprived of his political rights oncharges of “counterrevolutionary injuries” for “beating an armed police officerin the entrance of People's Hospital.”

Chang Jingqiang is an only child. His father was a furnace worker at theChinese Academy of Social Sciences and is in constant anger and stress over hisson. In 2000, Chang’s father suffered a cerebral blood clot. He was unable tocare for himself after that, so Chang’s mother watched over him. In 2005, hismother died, and his father soon followed. Before Chang was arrested, he livedtogether with his parents in a brick hutong in Xicheng District,Beijing and later in housing provided by Chang's father's employer in ZhongguanVillage, Beijing. In 1998, Zhongguan Village was torn down, and Chang's parentswere relocated to Doudian Town in Fangshan District, Beijing. Before he died,Chang's father gave his home and the surplus relocation funds (between 100,000- 200,000 yuan) to his nephew, entrusting his nephew to give it toChang Jingqiang [upon Chang's release]. However, Chang's cousin has not been incontact with him since Chang's father died, so he does not know what became ofthe house and funds.

Presently Chang Jingqiang is serving his sentence in squadron 5 of BeijingNo. 2 Prison. He has around two years remaining in his sentence.

4. Yang Pu (杨璞): Male, around 45. After June Fourth, Yang wasconvicted of "arson" and sentenced to death with a two-yearsuspension; he was also deprived of political rights for life.

On November 26, 1990, he was transferred from Beijing Prison No. 1 toBeijing Prison No. 2. In 1993, Yang was diagnosed with tuberculosis in both ofhis leg bones, and he required a cane in order to walk. He was sent to BinheHospital for treatment. In 1994, he was transferred to the patient ward ofChadian Prison. Later he was transferred to Yanqing Prison. Due to his illness,Yang was unable to perform manual labor, therefore he was unable to reduce hissentence.

Presently Yang is serving his sentence in Yanqing Prison. He has two tothree years remaining in his sentence.

5. Jiang Yaqun (姜亚群): Male, around 70. After June Fourth, Jiang wasconvicted of "arson" and sentenced to death with a two-yearsuspension; he was deprived of his political rights for life. In 1993, he wastransferred from Beijing No. 1 Prison to Beijing No. 2 Prison. He is unmarriedand has no living relatives. Presently Jiang Yaqun is serving his sentence atYanqing Prison. He has around five years remaining in his sentence.

6. Miao Deshun (苗德顺): Male, around 45. After June Fourth, Miao wasconvicted of “arson” and sentenced to death with a two-year suspension. He wasalso deprived of his political rights for life. Before his arrest, he residedin the Wukesong area and was unmarried.

In April, 1990, while serving his sentence at Beijing No. 1 Prison, he wasfound to have toxic hepatitis. (At the same time, there were four others inBeijing No. 1 Prison who were in the same cell who also had toxic hepatitisincluding Gao Hongwei, Yu Wen, and Yang Guanghui; they were all considered tobe so-called “thugs.”) At the end of 1993, he was transferred from Beijing No.1 Prison to Beijing No. 2 Prison and was labeled as an anti-reform troublemakersince he did not confess to his crime. In 1992, his death sentence was commutedto life sentence. Under normal circumstances, it can be reduced to a fixed termsentence in two or three years but he had to wait five because he refused toconfess to his crimes. In 1997, his life sentence was commuted to 20 years.

Miao is quite stubborn and in order to not create difficulties to hisfamily, he would not see his parents when they visited him in prison in 1997and later his family stopped visiting. Because of his refusal to change andparticipate in labor reform, he was beaten with electric batons by prisonofficers. The most severe incidence was when four prison captains wereelectrocuting him with electric batons but the prison captains did not hear himbeg for mercy.

During his time in prison, Miao, Shi Xueshi, and Liu Quan (50 years old,sentenced to 15 years after being convicted of being a “thug,” released in2006, and still has a dent on his head from being smashed on the head with agunstock by the martial law enforcers) were regarded as the most tenacious prisonersin the facility.

Presently Miao is serving his sentence at Yanqing Prison. He has over eightyears remaining in his sentence.

7. Shi Xuezhi (石学之): Male, around 70 years old. After June Fourth, hewas convicted of “arson” and was sentenced to life, and life-long deprivationof political rights for life. In December 1990, was transferred from BeijingNo. 1 Prison to Beijing No. 2 Prison. His life sentence was commuted to 16years and 6 months’ imprisonment in April 1993.

What should be mentioned is this: In the summer of 1991, the squadron ShiXuezhi belonged to (squadron seven) received an order from Beijing HuatengRubber&Plastic Latex Products Co to make latex gloves for export to theUnited States. Shi Xuezhi wrote many notes in English and Chinese and put theminside the gloves. He wrote messages such as, “Long live free democracy,”“freedom will save China,” “good Samaritan, please notify participants in theoverseas democratic movement to save us.”

When this was discovered, Shi was put handcuffed, chained, and placed insolitary confinement; his hands and feet were all cuffed together as he sat inthe empty room. Shi Xuezhi, who was over 50 years old at the time, alsoreceived beatings; he was stepped on by three or four police while five otherpolice beat him with electric batons. Each beating lasted for over half an hourand targeted at his groin, armpits, neck, and face. The electrocution was sosevere that his pubic hair was burnt off. Shi never begged for mercy from theofficers, not even once. Under the intense pain, Shi Xuezhi only groaned “ahh!”a few times, an automatic, involuntary reaction.

During the more than three months in confinement, Shi Xuezhi was taken backto middle unit frequently and beaten with electric batons. The prison officersreferenced Shi’s treatment to threaten the other troublemaking prisoners.Because of Shi’s old age, he was transferred from Beijing No. 2 Prison toYanqing Prison in 1998. He is currently serving his sentence there and shouldbe released at the end of 2009.

8. Song Kai (宋凯): Male, around 50 years old. After June Fourth, hewas convicted of “counterrevolutionary injuries” and was sentenced to life withlife-long deprivation of political rights.

On June Fourth, in front of Peking University People’s Hospital, ZhangBaosheng (15 at the time, sentenced to 10 years), Chang Jingqiang, Song Kai,and many other Beijing residents intercepted an Army ambulance. They pulled asoldier (Wang Yuwen, who at the time was given the title “Bodyguard of theRepublic”) from the vehicle and the crowd proceeded to beat him. Song Kai put awater bucket over Wang Yuwen’s head so that they would not beat the soldier’sface.

After being arrested, Song Kai was violently beaten by a few dozen martiallaw officers at Fengsheng Police Station and had his back broken which renderedhim disabled for life and could only walk while hunched over. In 1992, hisfamily spent a deal of money to make a case for his parole, but they did notsucceed. Before his arrest, Song Kai lived in Zhuanta hutong, XichengDistrict, Beijing. He was divorced soon after his arrest.

At the end of 1993, Song Kai was transferred from Beijing No. 1 Prison toBeijing No. 2 Prison and was relocated to Yanqing Prison in 1998. PresentlySong is serving his sentence at Yanqing Prison. He has one to two yearsremaining in his sentence.

Notes:

Sun LiyongSupport Network for the Persecuted in ChinaMay 5, 2009Sydney, Australia